


Trick or Treat

by insieme



Series: Canon Malec Drabbles [6]
Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Alec's first Halloween, Canon Compliant, Domestic Fluff, Established Relationship, Future Fic, Halloween, Halloween Costumes, Kid Fic, M/M, This is so soft
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-31
Updated: 2017-10-31
Packaged: 2019-01-27 12:23:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,507
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12581836
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/insieme/pseuds/insieme
Summary: Alec's first Halloween with Magnus and Max.





	Trick or Treat

**Author's Note:**

> Happy Halloween Angels!
> 
> Heres a little fluffy one shot about the Lightwood-Bane Family :) 
> 
>  
> 
> Enjoy!

Celebrating holidays was never something Alec had experienced as a child. 

In the Institute growing up, mundane holidays like Easter, Christmas, Halloween and all the others that they tended to get so excited about had never been celebrated or even really acknowledged. Alec remembered asking his mother when he was younger why and she had said to him that they had more important, and real, things to concern themselves with. That they didn't need to be focusing on some fictional mundane ideas when there were very real demons that needed to be eliminated. After that, Alec had never asked again. 

When Clary had come into their lives a few years ago, she had come bearing hordes of mundane traditions and holidays and it seemed every few months there was something new to celebrate. Birthdays, for example. Shadowhunters acknowledged birthdays sure, but it was never more than a ‘congratulations’. 

But when Clary had found out that none of them had ever had a birthday party, let alone received birthday _gifts_ (Alec was still unsure of the reasoning behind rewarding someone with gifts for just living for another year) she made it her mission to educate them in all things concerning mundane holidays. In that first year, they had more parties in the Institute Hall or Magnus' loft than Alec had ever had in his entire life. 

Magnus too, loved holidays of all sorts, even the smaller ones that people didn't often celebrate. Their first Christmas together was one that Alec would never forget (for many reasons). The loft was known for its drastic transformations ever few weeks, but when Alec had come home to find it strewn with holly, bells, fairy lights and so much _glitter_ , he had hardly been able to believe his eyes. Not to mention the giant pine tree, littered with lights and decorations that had suddenly appeared in the middle of their living room. 

But, over the years Alec had learned to appreciate the holidays and even found himself looking forward to them. He considered himself to be sort of an expert at this point, what with how excited Magnus got each time. You couldn't exactly live with Magnus Bane and not know everything there was to know about holidays. 

And so, Alec was proven once again wrong when he came home one day to find Magnus sitting on the floor of their living room, trying to put what appeared to be a lion costume on their son, Max. 

Max appeared to be putting up somewhat of a fight, little blue arms and legs flailing and an unhappy cry coming from his mouth. Magnus had his tongue stuck between his teeth, trying to secure the headpiece on the small child. “Babe?” Magnus looked up, clearly not having heard Alec come through the door. “Um - what are you doing to our child?” 

Magnus, to his credit, actually looked confused. “What am I - what do you mean? Putting him in a costume, of course” he said, like it was the most reasonable explanation in the world. Poor Max was still flailing on the ground and tears had started to fall down his chubby cheeks. Alec knelt down, picking him up and cradled him to his chest. His cries slowly faded out until they were just barely a whimper. 

“I can see that,” Alec started. “But what I'm asking is _why_ you are putting a lion’s mane on our child’s head.” Alec had to admit, he did look pretty cute. The costume looked like a little onesie, complete with pawed feet and even a fluffy tail. On his head was a hat with tassels surrounding the face, making it look like Max indeed had a mane. 

Magnus continued to look at Alec like he was speaking in another language (though that usually wouldn’t be a problem, seeing as Magnus knew more languages than Alec and all of his siblings combined). He looked from Alec to Max and then back to Alec before his face smoothed out and he let out a small, understanding laugh. “Oh I’ve completely forgotten!” 

Alec raised his eyebrows. In his arms, Max had stopped crying and was currently amusing himself with the tail attached to the costume, clutching it in his small fingers. “Forgotten what?”

Magnus grinned. “Well darling, sometimes I forget that you were deprived as a child and never experienced the traditional joys of it.” Alec opened his mouth to object but shut it promptly. Learning to disarm a man fifteen different ways before you were six was probably not what Magnus was referring to as ‘traditional’. 

“So dressing your infants up as natural predators is something mundanes do?” Alec asked, scrunching up his nose. Magnus rolled his eyes and chuckled, but stood up and retreated to the bedroom, leaving Alec sitting on the floor holding Max the lion. Max was smiling up at him, tear tracks still wet on his face. Alec brushed them away with his thumb. “You’re daddy has gone crazy, Max.” Max made a cooing noise in response. 

Magnus was back a moment later with his laptop. He sat back down beside Alec and opened it up, setting it on the floor between them. Silently, he opened up a new search bar and typed in ‘Halloween’. Images popped up of ghosts, monsters and witches though many of them were cartoons and looked much too happy. 

“Halloween originated about two thousand or so years ago. It was originally a Celtic holiday to celebrate the New Year, their calendar starting on November 1st.” 

“This doesn’t explain -” Magnus silenced him with a look and Alec rolled his eyes, fond, but bit his tongue. 

“On the eve of the 1st, or what we now refer to as Halloween, the Celts would dress up in costumes and dance around a fire in the hopes that it would scare away any ghosts and ghouls for the new year.” 

“It wasn’t until the late nineteenth century that the holiday came to America. What started as festivals and parties in the fall season, slowly grew to American children adapting the Celtic culture and bearing costumes on the 31st of October. These children would go door to door at night and ask neighbours for food and money, which is how trick-or-treating started.” 

“Trick-or-treating?”

Magnus nodded, smiling down at Max. “Mundane children dress up each year and go from house to house looking for candy. It is many children’s favourite holiday, as you can imagine.” 

Alec wasn’t sure if Magnus was tricking him or not. From what Alec knew about Halloween, it was a holiday about tricks after all. It seemed incredibly ridiculous that parents would just let their children run around the streets and ask random strangers for candy, let alone those strangers actually _providing_ them with it. 

“And this is something they still do?” 

Magnus laughed. “Of course! Next to Christmas, it is probably one of the most highly anticipated holidays there is.” 

Alec frowned. “And it’s just the children who dress up?” 

Magnus’ grin turned wicked. “Not at all. The children are the only ones who go house to house, but adults have their own fun. They love to dress up too, though their costumes are much different than the ones the children wear.” He paused. “Less cute, more ... mature.” 

Alec had a pretty good idea of what he was talking about, and his cheeks flushed. “And ... are you dressing up this year?” 

Magnus just smirked, kissing Alec on the cheek. “I have a costume but you’re going to have to wait until tonight to see it, darling.” He got up off the floor, dusting off his pants and holding a hand out to help Alec up off the ground. “Now, if you want to experience trick-or-treating first hand, Catarina has asked us if we would like to join her and Madzie this evening.” He gestured to Max, grinning. “Which is why I was getting him dressed.” 

He picked Max out of Alec's arms and brought him up above his own head. Max started giggling, reaching his small hands down to touch Magnus' face. He loud out an exaggerated roar, which only proved to make Max laugh harder. 

Alec shook his head, smiling. He really wasn’t sure what he in life he did to deserve someone like Magnus Bane, but whatever it was he was pretty damn glad he had done it. He watched Magnus standing in the doorway, holding their son in his ridiculous (and adorable) lion costume, one hand held out in Alec’s direction, waiting for him. “Coming darling?” 

Alec pushed himself up off the floor and twined his fingers with Magnus’, leaning in and giving Max a kiss on the forehead, and then one for Magnus, right on the mouth. “Happy Halloween, Magnus.” 

Smiling softly, Magnus blinked up at him. “Happy Halloween, Alexander.” 

And later that night when Magnus finally showed Alec his costume, Alec couldn’t help but think that maybe Magnus was right about Halloween being one of the most anticipated holidays. 

He was already looking forward to next year.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading!
> 
>  
> 
> You can find me on [Twitter](http://twitter.com/insiemes) if you want to chat!


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